Brisbane-based Australian fashion label Sabo Skirt has taken Shein, Kmart and 14 other brands to the Federal Court for allegedly copying dozens of its clothing designs, as design “duping” continues at pace.
The womenswear retailer has accused those businesses of duplicating part or all of its designs across 36 different patterns, prints or sketches at a poorer quality and selling them for lower prices, affecting the company’s sales and damaging its reputation, the ABC reported.
Sabo Skirt, which was founded in 2011 by best friends and sisters-in-law Thessy Batsinilas and Yiota Kouzoukas, filed the matter to the Queensland Federal Court on February 26 through operating company Larry and Luke. It is accusing ultra-fast fashion juggernaut Shein – the first respondent to the claim – of copying the designs of six items.
For instance, Sabo Skirt alleged Shein copied the design of red scalloped tiles on a white background featuring flowers, grapes and pear designs, as well as other distinctive features such as the V-split neckline and waist cut-outs.
Sabo Skirt is seeking compensation from the companies in the form of lost profit calculated by total sales of each respondent, loss of value to intellectual property and reputational damage.
A spokesperson for Shein said it was aware of the claims but could not comment further as the matter was before the courts.
“We take all claims of intellectual property infringement matters seriously. It is never our intent to infringe anyone’s valid intellectual property and it is not our business model to do so,” the spokesperson said.
In late 2024, ecommerce fashion retailer The Iconic sued Shein for selling clothes to Australians under the name “Dazy”, which the Australian-based retailer said infringed the trademarked name of its exclusive label, Dazie. The matter was later settled for a confidential sum.
Sabo Skirt also accused discount department giant Kmart of copying designs such as lobsters, shells and leaves scattered across a white background, the ABC reported.
One online-only fashion store is accused of copying the designs of 11 garments.
Sabo Skirt was contacted for comment. Kmart declined to comment.
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Jessica Yun is a business reporter covering retail and food for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via X or email.